TEMPLE EXCHANGE

Here it is at last. The long awaited Temple Exchange. Here, there are what I hope are simple step by step instructions on how to use some methods of chatting on the Net. That way, the Inner Circle can keep in touch better and not be left out of future Temple Chat Sessions. First up is how to access and use Talk.com from HotWired. This will be followed up by a short run through on how to setup mIRC and set it up for use. Hopefully that will be enough to facilitate the Temple, so until then that will be all I'll bother to put up. Please bear with any mistakes you may find and get back to me on it, cause I'm not very proficiant at this either, it's just my effort to keep people closer together.

TALK.COM

First off, what is Talk.com? It's basically a chat-room set up by the folks at HotWired. It allows real time chat in a fairly user-friendly enviorenment that is free access. Talk.com can be accessed two different ways, either by using the Java chatroom, or by accessing their server through Telnet. The way I will attempt to lead through, will be how to use the Java chatroom. The use of the Telnet feature requires some knowledge of Unix and I just can't explain it. Sorry!

Accessing Talk.com using Java

To be able to use the Java chatroom, obviously your computer must be able to support Java. People on commercial ISPs should have no restrictions on Java. For those using university or government servers, might encounter some sort of restriction. The more common problem is that Java requires a 32-bit OS like Windows 95. So basically if you're not running the latest version of Netscape or (dare I say it) Internet Explorer on Windows 95, you can't use the Java chatroom.

Step by Step

1. Register to Hotwired - This can be done directly at the Hotwired registration page.
2. Once you have your user name and password confirmed by HotWired. Go to theTalk.com page and click on the box on the left side of the screen that says "Enter".
3. Wait.
4. A login window will open prompting for your username and password. This is the one in the confirmation email sent by HotWired.
5. After your ID has been confirmed another window will pop up asking for you to choose your nickname. This refers to the name you will be known as in the chatroom itself.
6. Pick a nickname and click on OK.
7. After this, you'll be connected to Talk.com and will probably be put into one of the HotWired lounges.
8. To chat, just type your comment in the bar at the bottom of the screen.
9. Press enter to submit your 'voice'.
10. To change rooms, just highlight the desired room and click on change rooms.

Now you should be all ready to try it out. I hope the Step by Step is comprehensive enough for you to start out on the path to chatting. If you have any queries, just direct them to me and I'll see if I can help. Have fun!

mIRC

Here it is at last! How to download and install mIRC to join in the lively discussions with Inner Circle members every night! Singapore time of course 8). I'm probably not the best one to be writing this but seeing as I'm the Caretaker and all, here goes. What I'm going through will only be the basics on how to get the software and how to get to the channel that people at the Temple frequent. There are lots of other features of mIRC that make things alot more interesting... but that's up to YOU to explore! 8)

Downloading mIRC

1. Go to mIRC download page - The site at which to download mIRC is at http://www.mirc.co.uk.
2. Once at the homepage for mIRC, scroll down the page until you see a link to "Download". This will take you to the download page for mIRC.
3. Select either the 16-bit or 32-bit version of mIRC. This would depend on the what version of windows you're using. If you're using Windows 3.1 then you'll need to get the 16-bit version. Otherwise if you're using Windows 95 then the 32-bit version is the one for you.
4. Click on the version of mIRC that you want to dowload and save it to disk somewhere you remember. For example, c:/download.

Installing mIRC